Q&A with Hal Lublin: Bringing thrills to live radio

A western lawman sent to Mars. Tipsy, ghost-viewing well-to-dos. Amelia Earhart, alive and fighting Nazis throughout history.

The characters that have sprung from “The Thrilling Adventure Hour,” a loving parody of radio theater, are as vivid in the minds of comedy fans as the personalities of the actors who voice them (regular performers include Paul F. Tompkins, Nathan Fillion and Paget Brewster). The show started in 2005 as live performances at M Bar in Hollywood and is now a well-known podcast (and soon to be a graphic novel), while also hitting the road for performances.

amNewYork spoke with longtime cast member Hal Lublin in advance of the “Thrilling Adventure Hour’s” shows at the Bell House on Saturday.

What makes “old-time” radio a fertile ground for comedy?
It has a sort of fresh twist. What it does really well is poke [fun] at all of these genre tropes without being insulting to the genre or the people who enjoy it. If you love westerns or sci-fi or classic comedies, you’ll enjoy the show.

Last December, the show raised more than $190,000 through a Kickstarter campaign to expand into different media.
It was really gratifying. It’s weird to think that a show that started off in a supperclub in Los Angeles is now a graphic novel and a Web series and a concert film. That people have connected to the show either by coming to see it live or by listening to it in podcast form enough, it’s become dear to them and they’re the ones that made this happen.

Now that radio plays are back, what’s the next retro craze: the Charleston or gladiator fights?
Can we combine them? Because if you get two people doing the Charleston at a rave, it’ll probably turn into a gladiator fight.

“Thrilling Adventure Hour” is at the Bell House on Saturday at 7 and 9:30 p.m., 149 Seventh St., Gowanus, 718-643-6510, sold out.